Food, decorations and lanterns are widely used and prepare each street and home in China and other Chinese communities for the Chinese New Year celebration. Food is an important element of Chinese New Year celebration, and every item represents a particular belief with regard to what the New Year may bring. These morsels of knowledge have been inherited from the previous generations, and their origins are linked to Chinese folk stories. When we gnash on these goodies, we are linked to centuries of cultures and customs, so are entertained with history. A perfect example of a holiday sweet is the niangao, or Chinese New Year cake. Thus, it is a sticky and chewy cake, on which the main elements symbolize the union of a family and the desire for a better future. These are the stories about how niangao came to be: There is a fairy tale that a Chinese general armed the residents of the besiege city with the cakes and glutinous rice supply nutritious food until the lunar New Year to wait for reinforcements to come. Another credits it to a woman who was concoting a treat for the god of the kitchen claiming that those who got to taste her creation will be stuck. There needs to be wealth with the Chinese New Year banquet and that comes in the form of fa gao or prosperity cakes. The character of these sweet buns steamed and filled with nuts, coconut, sesame, or red bean paste evidently invites the arrival of good luck if you notice their golden hue. Their name fa gao is a reaction to gaining prosperity and therefore it is perfect to represent an element that symbolises the start of the new year. It is a wonderful tradition to eat as many fa gao as you can because the more of them you have consumed the more money is going to come to you the subsequent year. For this reason facgao are presented high in stacks representing their capacity to help you stack your wealth. Chinese New Year confectioneries are not only associated with auspicious meanings but also from the nuts and fruits to the shapes and ways of preparation. Candied kumquats are traditionally seen as symbols of gold, probably due to their ability to bring in money. Other preparations include longan and lotus seeds, for fertility and abundance of children and displayed in small bowls as encouraged for child bearing. Sesame and peanut powdered glutinous rice balls enjoying the smooth texture resembling perfect round shape like family reunion. Fa Pei Gao Steamed layer cakes which are auspicious looking cakes when sliced and depicting an upward climb of stairs to success are made for the God of Wealth. The very names of these rebus restaurants stick to lucky linguistic/seemingly references – Jin Dou Yuan towering gold ingot buns for the financial prosperity, for instance. There are a lot of legends and rituals concerning these symbolic confectionery preparations. Baking a diversity of Chinese New Year food items to give out to friends, families, and business partners convey so much appreciation, companionship and wishes for prosperity. Attention is given not to slice the cakes, but to provide them in whole loaves, so that incoming fortune would not ‘escape’. They are arranged prettily on three or nine tier stands, because three and nine are both numbers of good auspice. It maybe a practice to offer sugared fruits on New Year’s eve on the altar to the Sweet Tooth God locked out of the party. It was mentioned that at midnight the families use the巧克力 to make everything sweet in the coming year. Surprisingly, many of Chinese New Year desserts stem from Huiyin back through dynasties with most of the tales belong to legends and historical events. Tangyuan are ordinary buns which are stuffed ones and their round shape represents family togetherness. Eaten during the lantern festival that marks the end of the New Year festivities, tangyuan originate from the Eastern Han dynasty when a palace cook who used the remaining rice flour to make balls. In the course of the Song dynasty people prepared the shells of sticky rice and filled them with black sesame or bean paste in order that it looked like the full moon. The name tangyuan itself refers back to the Tang dynasty making the delicious sweet dumplings part of Chinese food history. The huge range of sweets is orientated and depends on the regional and cultural traditions as well as historical familial preferences. Hailing from Shanghai, nian gao layered rice cakes or the steamed ricedumplings of Shandong or the fried sesame balls filled with black sesame in northern china are all specialities of cities that travellers can savour. Some of the delicacies learnt include how overseas Chinatowns modify the use of available ingredients for example lotus seed paste filled cookies in San Francisco, pineapple tarts in Singapore among others. Most families continue their own recipes and nobody will tell secrets for making super non-stick longevity noodles or ideal pineapple stuffing. It means that every dinner table of all the families is part of the diverse Chinese dessert culture. Lucky Desserts are inedible goodies for Chinese New Year, which mean more than a sugar rush. Traditions and folklore are hidden inside each sweet that a chef decides to cook. As we raise our steaming mugs of sweet rice wine, sup sweet red bean soup with soup spoons and exchange homemade candied fruits, we engage with those who have been meaning-making with these rituals for centuries. One bite is celebration of our fore fathers who influenced the food that we consume as well as defining the food for the future generation. The confections may themselves become but the stuff of memory but the meaning of the confections stays – love for ones family, for wealth, and for sweetness. This sucrosity is here for its never-ending undercurrent of religiosity, timeless carrier meant to prepare one for the receipt of the meaningful traditions enshrine in the confections. So as you enjoy Chinese New Year or taste some of the yummy items associated with this celebration time it is good to reflect on some of the rich histories and meanings conveyed in these foods. Apart from the first kicking your palate’s sweet cravings, they penetrate deeper than several layers of a nian gao cake! Take time to taste and feel the history embodied in these foods and be in a position to relate with the people who have upheld these meals through several generations.
As we eagerly anticipate the reunion with loved ones for the Year of the Tiger, these festive treats evoke cherished memories and provide comfort. The assortment of Chinese New Year goodies and snacks symbolizes much more than just sweet indulgence—they represent our enduring love for family, the hope for brighter days ahead, and the joy that comes from the simple sweetness of life. These carefully crafted delights not only bring happiness to the table but also remind us of the meaningful traditions that persist through generations. As we gather to celebrate, these treats infuse our celebrations with the warmth of togetherness and the promise of prosperity in the new year.
